Stabilization systems, such as an actively stabilized camera gimbal, often require a remote operator to control the pan, tilt, and/or slew rates of the camera. Therefore, control of a handheld gimbal requires two operators, who translate and point the gimbal simultaneously. One of the operators carries the gimbal, e.g., the camera operator, while the other operator, e.g., the remote operator, controls the pointing angle of the camera.
Typically, the remote control of the stabilized camera has been effected through use of a joystick and a monitor. However, to achieve the level of precision and control acceptable in film production and to be able control the camera gimbal and the camera, effectively, the remote operator needs to exercise a particular skill and adeptness, which may only be acquired through substantial practice and training. Also, the joystick sensitivity requires calibration for fast or slow slew rates to ensure smooth control of the camera by the remote operator during slow and fast movements of the camera operator, and is dependent on the type of desired effect and/or scene. The remote operator may easily cause unintentional jitter of the joystick, which results in deterioration in the quality of the captured footage, sometime imparting significant deterioration. Additionally, known remote control devices for controlling camera gimbals often produce a ‘discontinuous steps’ effect when commanding a change in the pointing angle of the camera, for example via some resolution limits on a joystick sensor.
Thus, it is desirable to provide a system, device, and method to improve the level of control and flexibility of the remote control device available to the remote operator and enable the remote operator to easily and intuitively control the camera gimbal and to capture the footage required. It is further desirable to reduce pointing jitter caused by remote controlling of the camera gimbal.